Arsenal blocked from Ethan Nwaneri loan clause giving Borussia Dortmund Champions League boost

Ethan Nwaneri is expected to join Borussia Dortmund on loan from Arsenal(Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

Arsenal will be unable to prevent Ethan Nwaneri from potentially inflicting Champions League heartache upon them this season, despite still being contracted to them. The 18-year-old is expected to join Borussia Dortmund on a season-long loan deal.

Premier League rules would mean that a loanee is not able to play against their parent club unless an agreement allowing them to do so exists. However, that is different for loans to clubs outside of England which affects Arsenal.

In Europe, players are able to play against their parent club for UEFA competitions. Phillipe Coutinho is perhaps one of the most famous examples of this.

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On loan from Barcelona, he scored Bayern Munich’s seventh and eighth goals in an 8-2 win for the German champions in 2020. He didn’t celebrate, understandably so, considering he was still technically a Barca player.

Nwaneri could therefore return to the Emirates Stadium and play against the Gunners for Borussia Dortmund in the league phase of the Champions League. Nwaneri ironically scored against BVB in a pre-season friendly for Arsenal at the Emirates this summer in a 3-2 defeat.

Arsenal would even be prevented from seeking an agreement with Dortmund to prevent Nwaneri from playing in the game. UEFA do not allow clubs to enter into agreements that would not allow players to feature against their parent club.

The two sides will meet on November 24 in north London. The Gunners will also play German champions Bayern and Spanish heavyweights Real Madrid in a very tough eight-team gauntlet which is far more challenging than last season’s run where Arsenal won all of their matches.

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